O'Brien Reassigned to Springfield

The Tampa Bay Lightning have reassigned defenseman Doug O'Brien to the Springfield Falcons. The move comes following O'Brien being a healthy scratch in the Lightning's last game, vs. the Florida Panthers. The transaction also means Timo Helbling has passed O'Brien on the organizational depth chart as Helbling will remain in Tampa until Pavel Kubina is healthy. Both O'Brien and Helbling will likely be on Tampa's playoff roster should the Lightning hold on to their spot in the standings.
O'Brien averaged 7 minutes and 43 seconds of ice time for the Bolts, most of which was recorded when both Dan Boyle, who returned last night, and Kubina were out of the lineup. He registered two shots on goal and an even rating.
He will be welcomed back to a Falcons lineup that has featured only five defensemen in recent games.